A perfectly executed bullet into the top left corner of the net by
Jason Scotland in the 77th minute topped of a performance of sheer
determination as Trinidad and Tobago held 2002 World Cup semi-finalists
to a 1-1 draw before 27,000 boisterous Korean fans at the Seoul World
Cup Stadium on Wednesday night.The result, maybe one of the highest ranked in the history of the
T&T senior team, considering that they were playing the third place
finishers in their own backyard, left FIFA Vice President Jack Warner,
coach Bertille St Clair, skipper Angus Eve and his teammates an
overwhelmed bunch in Seoul. Added to that, the sounds of the Angostura
Woodbrook Playboys Steel Orchestra playing David Rudders Trini to de
bone echoing through the Stadium and the sight of some Koreans moving
in their style to the beat was a remarkable one.

The result,
according to St Clair, was simply a positive one as T&T prepares
for the semi-final round of the 2006 World Cup qualifiers.

I think
it was a great effort from the guys and it bridges the gap between some
of the overseas pros and some of the local players. I never thought
about this result but I thought about the exercise. We wanted this kind
of game for the experience. In cases like these you aspire to achieve
and this is what the guys did tonight, St Clair told TTFF Media after
the match.

What I wanted was that kind of fighting performance from
the guys because we have been speaking about it. We took it like a
boxer going through a battle round by round. Nothing comes easily and
practice makes permanent. When you do things over and over it
automatically comes easy, he added.

Going into the match on the
back of a 3-2 loss to Thailand and missing several key starters, the
end result seemed a far way off but Eve and his men demonstrated strong
character and fight to hold off the usual quick playing Koreans who had
six members of their World Cup team around.

Both teams started off
evenly with the Koreans having the first look at goal when former
Italian-based forward Jung Hwan Ahn picked up a loose ball and forced
goalkeeper Kelvin Jack to push around his left post. It was the first
of several timely interceptions by the big custodian.

Captian Angus
Eve tested the agility of club Suwon Samsung and Korean captain keeper
Jae-Woon Lee with a teasing right side free kick in search of Scotland
and from there on, it appeared that the fans were in for a keenly
contested affair.

Jack was quick off line to stop Ahn from meeting a
through ball and then he rushed out again to block Gook Lees close
range effort.

Wake Forest University striker Scott Sealy, who was
persistent up front, had the best effort of the first half when he
collected a ball which Anthony Rougier did well to win, and moved
across the box before unleashing a bullet which crashed off the top
right woodwork, leaving the Koreans in awe for an instant.

The
second half started slowly but the Koreans rode their luck in the 52nd
minute when German-based striker Du-Ri Cha ran onto a ball played
inside the box and poked the ball through Jacks grasps to send the
Koreans 1-0 ahead. The easy goal failed to deter the Soca Warriors
who fought on in a most admirable manner, on occasions winning applauds
from the home fans for their efforts.

Silvio Spann was introduced in
place of a hardworking Rahim in the 55th minute and after a foul on him
won T&T a free kick on the right of the box, T&T went near to
grabbing an equalizer. Keyeno Thomas rose above all, only to head just
over bar from the six-yard box. The latter along with debutant Derek
Phillips, Marlon Rojas, Kenwyne Jones and sweeper Derek King were a
force throughout, chasing and tackling anything in their sight before
King was forced to leave the field with a hamstring pull in the 67th
minute, replaced by Michael Celestine. Moments earlier, Rojas sent
Sealy down the left flank and his cross went inches over Scotlands
head as T&T searched for the equalizer. But the Dundee United
striker made amends for his miss when Spann found Sealy on the edge of
the box, held off two defenders and laid back a ball for Scotland to
let fly past a hapless Lee who got a touch only after the ball flew
back at him after hitting the net.

The goal kept T&T in the
fight and though Korea kept pressing, T&T went close again in the
85th minute when Eve swung a free kick in for Thomas to head inches
over. The Korean fans lifted their voices and saw PSV based midfielder
Park Ji-Sung hit the post in the dying stages.

South Korea fielded a
strong team which included PSV midfielders Lee Young-Pyo and Park
Ji-Sung, Belgium based striker Seol Ki-Hyeon of RSCA Anderlecht, former
Perugia striker Ahn Jung-Hwan of Yokohama, Frankfurt FC striker and
South Korea's goal-scorer Cha Du-Ri among others.

When Japanese
referee Matsumara Kazuhiko blew the final whistle, it signaled the end
of stimulating performance by the Soca Warriors.

Skipper Eve
couldnt have wanted better. I think its a brilliant result for us
especially when you take everything into consideration. We were playing
a third place World Cup in their backyard which is at the height of
preparations for the Asian Cup and World qualifiers. We were also not
enjoying the best of results recently so this definitely is a major
boost for us now, Eve ended. The team is expected back home on Friday
via Bangkok and London and will leave Seoul on Thursday.